ANGLICAN ORDERS.

New Zealand Tablet, 24 September 1908, Page 11

ANGLICAN ORDERS.

In the course of a correspondence in v the Dominion, an able and well-informed Catholic writer summarises as follows the case against Anglican Orders :—: — He (Mr. Milligan) seems to call into doubt my assertion that the bishops of the old Church in England refused to have anything to do with the ordering of Queen' Elizabeth's new bishops and that I rely upon the ' Nag's Head ' fable to prove that the historic episcopal succession was broken. By no means.' No authority nowadays quotes that fable, and I am quite as .we'll aware as Mr. Milligan of the entry in the Lambeth- Register showing that Parker was consecrated by Bishop Barlow and others. But I am also aware of certain events immediately preceding that ceremony. Parker l{ad been appointed by Queen Elizabeth as her first Archbishop of Canterbury, a Royal Commission to consecrate him was issued' to certain, of the old bishops, but none of those occupying the old sees could bejnduced to act, so a new Commission 'had to be issued on December 6, 1559, to Kitchin,' Bishop of Llandaff, and to several-un-attached prelates without sees," authorising them 'or any ■fouof them' to confirm the election of and consecrate Matthew Parker as Archbishop of Canterbury. ' Kitchin "deliberately and firmly refused to act, though he had Seen the only one" of the canonicS'l - bishops of the time to take tfie oath of supremacy. So the cere mony was performed; as Mr. Mil'lig™ slates,' by Barlow Scorry Coverdale, and Hodgkins, who in the previous" reign had 'been deprived and some of them excommunicated' for their heresy" and unquestionable' lives. ' ' ' ' • . • ■

Now, had these men", or even one of them, consecrated Parked according to the ancient, ordinal -in . use in. England, for. centuries and throughout- the Catholic, world down- to -the- present day, no doubt could be cast -on r , Anglican, Orders from -a Catholic point of,. yiew-the^remooy, might; have -been •■Amcanonical and illegal, even, according, to ,, English.-law*,. -law*, but, it-would <hav*.be.en valid. But it is a. matter of history-- |hat- these-men,- not /only did not ; themselve S ieljeve- in- orders^ -th^ CaAolic /historic sense,, but they used a- pew form' coordination., ;tbat^ was .first introduced in- the reign, of. Edward -V1,,. aajd. repealed. in- that. of Alary, and which, has always been held invalid .by > -Catholics Orientals,, etc.- Here,' then, waS ..<he historic succession broken! With- regard -to the Greek Church,, ; it r doe^n6t: fJ nat^ h ow t friendly mdividual Greeks may be socially 2nd " otherwise ' with Anghcans, the fact' remains indisputable that' the"' Greek" Church does not acknowledge the validity of Anglican orders ' Their cuslom « always to reordain absolutely any Anglican clergyman who wishes to minister j R the (. rceH Chur9h j can " Milligan specific instances if he wishes for them. Mr. Milligan doubts whether .the Anglican Church as At present constituted was originally, established and ..now ruled and governed b/ the civil power.. . .But that this is so admits of no dema Ihe change of religion in, ,559, 559 was . made by-Oueen and I arhament ; the Church had nothing, to do with it.7 J n fact ,t protested vigorously against the new order of -things Jhe b.shops and abbots did so in the House of Lords when thr new leg.sahon was brought before.it. The Convocation of o T m . e^ n - L f ° n T don °» J» nuar y 24. 1559, under the presidency of the B.shop of London, and they drew up several resolutions! one being that they believed the Roman Pontiff to be the head of the Church and vicar of Christ. All . the members of the Convocat.on signed these outspoken resolutions, and they were sent to Parliament, which ignored them. Shortly afterwards the leading clergy, all the bishops and several of .the dignitarieVwerc put in prison to get rid of inconvenient; opposition. . Who now appoints the Archbishop of Canterbury? The British Cabinet which may be and is composed of all and no religions, Catholics and infidels included. What is the final court of appW&fc* Anglican Church? The Privy Council. The effect ofthe legislation under Henry VIII., revived by Elizabeth aftdTconV firrnrd in subsequent reigns, has been, as Lord Campbell^ateted out .n his famous Gorham judgment in April, ,850' • ■&s£& m the Crown all that decisive jurisdiction which before" the Reformation had been exercised by the Pope.' If this does not make the Anglican Church a purely State institution, what then does? As Macaulay said years ago, <itis as much a department of State as the Court of Common Pleas.' These surely are vvo.ghty facts which Mr. Milligan would do well to consider" mS p°, bC f f r - msnded and to get at the truth of hmg* Perhaps he may in time come, to see", as many others kc Newman, Manning, and Benson have' -seen, that? a branch theory that by the principal branched, 6r a province theory wh.ch is unknown to the other provinces, and alon--■nuity theory ol f which more than fWelve thousand documents in the Record Ofi.ce and the Vatican - Library a* the" dyerStrS.t^SS CanaOt^ affbrd SUrC ?-" d^.-PPO-